The present invention relates to powered line fishing devices for creating a suctioning and blowing force for moving a line fishing piston, and attached line, through a conduit under the suctioning or blowing force. The present invention also serves as a blower or vacuum independent of fishing line through a conduit.
Conduit is used in many different ways to house and protect power and communication lines or cables. The conduit material is installed without the cables to facilitate proper installation. After the conduit is in place the cables must be threaded through the conduit. In order to thread the cables through the conduit, a pulling line must be threaded through the conduit. Once the pulling line is threaded through the conduit, the pulling line is attached to the cables for pulling the cables through the conduit.
A variety of devices are available to assist in threading a pulling line through conduit. In one situation a rigid, yet directionally flexible, "fish tape" is threaded through the conduit. The fish tape allows a degree of flexibility but is rigid enough to be pushed from a first open end of the conduit to a second open end of the conduit. This type of fish tape is useful in many situations but provide some difficulties where a number of curves or bends are encountered in the conduit. Additionally, for practical purposes such a fish tape may not be useful over extremely long distances.
For long distances or lengths of conduit which have many curves or bends, a suctioning and vacuuming device has been developed. Such devices are referred to generally as a "powered line fishing device". These devices include a piston which is insertable into the conduit and moved through the conduit by a suctioning or blowing force on the conduit. A pulling line is attached to the piston, prior to inserting the piston into the conduit, for threading the pulling line through the conduit.
The powered line fishing devices generally fall into two categories: large, expensive, high force devices; and small, inexpensive, low force devices. Each of these devices are typically specifically designed and manufactured for the a corresponding line fishing function, vis. large diameter conduit, or small diameter conduit, and therefore are somewhat specialized in design and construction.
The large devices provide a very useful function in the appropriate situation. With large diameter conduits, a large diameter piston must be used. In order to drive a large diameter piston through a large diameter conduit a rather large suctioning or blowing force is necessary to displace the volume of air in the large diameter conduit. In this application a large powered fishing device is very useful. For applications where a small diameter conduit is used or space requirements limit the use of a large power fishing device, the large device can be inconvenient or impossible to use.
For smaller diameter conduit applications and in small spaces, a smaller, less expensive, less powerful vacuum/blowing device is available. The smaller devices essentially provide a motor and impeller without a vacuum chamber. In this regard, a smaller suctioning or blowing force is developed by this device. While these devices are portable, they are limited in the degree of suction or blowing that they can create.
Each of the powered line fishing devices include a container or body, vacuum/blower unit, and a vacuum chamber in the body. The vacuum/blower unit communicates with the vacuum chamber in the container for pulling a vacuum in the chamber. The pressure differential created in the vacuum chamber tends to pull or collapse the walls of the container inwardly. As such, the walls of the container must be designed to prevent the collapse of the container when a vacuum is created in the vacuum chamber.
The vacuum/blower unit includes a motor and impeller. The motor drives the impeller to evacuate air from the chamber to create a vacuum in the vacuum chamber. Prior art devices position the vacuum/blower unit on the top of the container. The position of the vacuum/blower unit on top of the container makes the device top heavy and somewhat unstable.
Prior art devices have attempted to overcome the stability problem by positioning wheels or feet attached to the bottom of the container a distance away from the container. These "outrigged" supports, however, add weight to the device decreasing portability, add space limitations for using the device, and require further custom design and components. Additionally, since the vacuum/blower unit is mounted on the top, outside of the container, a special protective cover must be installed over this assembly to protect it from damage.
In terms of structure, the large devices require a large thick-walled container body to withstand the substantial suctioning and blowing forces created by the device. Smaller devices employ wall dimensions which are substantially thinner than the large devices, but are proportionally dimensioned to withstand the vacuum forces created by the vacuum/blower unit. Regardless of the device, prior art devices use custom designed and manufactured containers to withstand the collapsing forces of the vacuum.
As such, it would be desirable to provide a device which is more portable and less expensive than the large devices yet provides a greater vacuuming force than the currently available small devices. Additionally, it would be desirable to provide a device which is more stable than the currently available unit.